August 07, 2012

fagioli alla salvia col miglio / beans with sage and millet

These beans were excellent, an example of minimalist perfection.

I had a hard time coming up with a title for the post: this dish is not really a salad, nor a soup, nor a stew. However, in the end, names are not as important as flavor, which in this case is very interesting.

We start with the beans. I have made this recipe with two kinds of beans from my pantry:

How to cook dry beansThe way I cook beans for further use comes from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison (Beans with Aromatics). After soaking half a cup of dry beans for several hours or overnight in enough water to cover them by about an inch (I use two cups), empty the whole bowl into a saucepan and add

Half of a small onion (or a quarter of a medium one), halved

A bay leaf

A small clove of garlic, sliced

A couple of sprigs of fresh parsley

Bring the water to a lively boil quickly, and keep it there for five minutes, then turn down the heat and let the beans simmer, covered, until they are ready. How long this takes depends on the type of beans and their freshness. Let them cool in their broth, then remove the aromatics and discard them. Let the beans rest in their cooking broth until ready to use.

Then we have millet, an ancient grain, which is gluten free. On the right, you see hulled millet in its natural state. On the left, you see the same millet after being toasted. The toasting step takes only a few minutes and it is worth the small effort: toasting gives millet a deeper, earthier flavor.

How to cook milletFor this dish, I used 1/4 cup uncooked millet. Of course, you can cook more and take what you need, saving the rest for another dish. Warm up a skillet on medium heat, then add the millet and toast for a few minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning. You will hear the millet pop (this is half the fun of toasting grains).

Take millet off the heat and pour into a pan with 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat but keep the lid on for another 5 minutes. Add a pinch of sea salt and fluff with a fork.

A handful of kale blossoms, optional (but recommended, both as a color and as a texture accent)

Sea salt and freshly milled black pepper, to taste

You can prepare beans and millet ahead. The final assembly takes a short time, which makes this dish ideal for a quick lunch or dinner (pranzo o cena).

Warm up the olive oil in a saucepan, then add the onion and stir well. After a couple of minutes, add the garlic and sage and stir. After a couple more minutes, add the kale blossoms, if using. Let cook over gentle heat until the onion is translucent. Add the cooked beans with their cooking liquid and bring to a boil. Simmer for a couple of minutes to blend the flavors. Add the cooked millet and stir well. Make sure everything is nice and hot, then adjust salt and pepper, give a good final stir, take the pan off the heat and serve immediately.

Comments

fagioli alla salvia col miglio / beans with sage and millet

These beans were excellent, an example of minimalist perfection.

I had a hard time coming up with a title for the post: this dish is not really a salad, nor a soup, nor a stew. However, in the end, names are not as important as flavor, which in this case is very interesting.

We start with the beans. I have made this recipe with two kinds of beans from my pantry:

How to cook dry beansThe way I cook beans for further use comes from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison (Beans with Aromatics). After soaking half a cup of dry beans for several hours or overnight in enough water to cover them by about an inch (I use two cups), empty the whole bowl into a saucepan and add

Half of a small onion (or a quarter of a medium one), halved

A bay leaf

A small clove of garlic, sliced

A couple of sprigs of fresh parsley

Bring the water to a lively boil quickly, and keep it there for five minutes, then turn down the heat and let the beans simmer, covered, until they are ready. How long this takes depends on the type of beans and their freshness. Let them cool in their broth, then remove the aromatics and discard them. Let the beans rest in their cooking broth until ready to use.

Then we have millet, an ancient grain, which is gluten free. On the right, you see hulled millet in its natural state. On the left, you see the same millet after being toasted. The toasting step takes only a few minutes and it is worth the small effort: toasting gives millet a deeper, earthier flavor.

How to cook milletFor this dish, I used 1/4 cup uncooked millet. Of course, you can cook more and take what you need, saving the rest for another dish. Warm up a skillet on medium heat, then add the millet and toast for a few minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning. You will hear the millet pop (this is half the fun of toasting grains).

Take millet off the heat and pour into a pan with 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat but keep the lid on for another 5 minutes. Add a pinch of sea salt and fluff with a fork.

A handful of kale blossoms, optional (but recommended, both as a color and as a texture accent)

Sea salt and freshly milled black pepper, to taste

You can prepare beans and millet ahead. The final assembly takes a short time, which makes this dish ideal for a quick lunch or dinner (pranzo o cena).

Warm up the olive oil in a saucepan, then add the onion and stir well. After a couple of minutes, add the garlic and sage and stir. After a couple more minutes, add the kale blossoms, if using. Let cook over gentle heat until the onion is translucent. Add the cooked beans with their cooking liquid and bring to a boil. Simmer for a couple of minutes to blend the flavors. Add the cooked millet and stir well. Make sure everything is nice and hot, then adjust salt and pepper, give a good final stir, take the pan off the heat and serve immediately.

To use any of the photographs published in the blog permission must be obtained from Simona
No food was (nor will ever be) discarded in the process of taking the photographs, i.e., everything was consumed either immediately or in due time